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Latest Cycling News for March 21, 2007

Spanish newspaper takes aim at judge who shelved Puerto

Only a few days after he
shelved the criminal proceedings against the persons accused in the
sweeping Spanish doping case known as Operación Puerto, judge Antonio
Serrano has been the subject of a highly critical article in El Pais,
the Spanish newspaper that originally broke the story back in May last
year.

Serrano shelved the case based on a legal argument that the suspects
named or identified in Operación Puerto did not commit an offence
in Código Penal terms (the Spanish penal code). When the investigation
started in May 2006, doping was not a criminal offence in Spain. However,
at the time, the revelations of OP led to a firestorm in cycling, with
favourites such as Ivan Basso and Jan Ullrich being dramatically pulled
from the 2006 Tour de France on the eve of the race.

The case has dragged on and while the International Cycling Union (UCI)
claims to still have the capacity to carry out sanctions against those
riders named in the journals and records of Madrid-based Doctor Eufemiano
Fuentes, the case has been effectively shelved by the Spanish judiciary.

The decision by the Spanish judge has led to some harsh analysis of his
work, as the Spanish newspaper alleged the judge had made several errors
in his handling of the case. According to the paper, he permitted the
Guardia Civil to do wiretaps of phone lines so its officers could continue
with their investigations, considered a violation of the Spanish citizens'
rights when there is no indication of an offence.

Serrano, who at the beginning of the proceedings was willing to question
more than 50 cyclists about their relationship with Doctor Fuentes,
the treatments they received from him and if they suffered from health
problems following the treatments, halted the query on the grounds that
if someone was suffering any health problems due to doping practices,
the rider could have voluntarily stopped.

Further, according to El País, Serrano never questioned the
highly outspoken Spanish cyclist Jesús Manzano and denied the request
to send the medical history of a cyclist who, years ago, suffered a cerebral
disease due to the synergistic effect of the use of EPO and vitamin A.

The paper states that he also refused a request to send the medical history
of alleged suspect Marcos Serrano, who was a rider of Manolo Saiz's Liberty
Seguros-Würth team, when he was hospitalised during the 2006 Giro d'Italia,
which Serrano considered not connected with Operación Puerto.

The Spanish paper points out that Serrano was opposed to DNA exams to
identify the blood bags nor did he allow the use of information contained
in mobile phones or SIM cards. This meant that many rumours, like the
implication of other sportsmen in football, tennis or athletics, could
not be proved.

Finally, El Pais noted that Serrano was not interested in the
clarification of the cases of Santiago Pérez and Tyler
Hamilton, who both tested positive to homologous blood transfusion
- same blood type, different donor. Allegedly, they were both clients
of Fuentes and their blood was stored in his refrigerator. The paper alleged
that Serrano did not investigate the only plausible explanation; that
the blood bags had been confused and that the both cyclists were lucky
that their blood groups were compatible. To date, former teammates Hamilton
and Pérez are the only two cyclists to have tested positive for homologous
blood transfusions.

The reaction in Spain to news of OP's legal limbo has been swift and
caustic. "Now you can say we're getting it from all sides," an unnamed
cyclist said to El País. "The cheater says that the shelving is
like exoneration, like proof that they were innocent, so that they will
continue doing what they did before, and even with more impunity. A further
difference will between us, who are riding cleanly, and them. They will
not only beat us again, no, they will also laugh at us."

ProTour meeting to take place in mid-April

UCI expresses some concerns over honouring of agreement

By Shane Stokes

Following the agreement
reached on March 5th between the UCI, the IPCT and the Grand Tour
organisers regarding the ProTour, a date for the next meeting is currently
being finalised between the parties concerned.

Under the terms of the agreement, meetings will take place each month.
The next session will take place in mid-April, with the exact date to
be agreed shortly. Prior to that, the UCI will have a meeting with the
UCI ProTour Council (CUPT) on April 5th. It is expected that the ProTour
deal will be discussed here, along with the UCI's concerns that the spirit
of the agreement is not being fully respected.

"We made an agreement on the fifth of March and I am not satisfied that
the parties have adhered strictly to their word, as such," said UCI President
Pat McQuaid on Tuesday to Cyclingnews. "I will bring it up at the
next meeting that we have [with them] in the middle of April. I have already
indicated to the other parties that the UCI is not happy with that situation."

McQuaid declined to get into the specifics of what the UCI is unhappy
about, but it is likely that the continuing ambiguity over Unibet.com's
participation in races is a big issue. In a recent interview with Cyclingnews,
Vuelta a Espańa race director Victor Cordero remained
uncommitted to allowing the team into the Spanish Tour, despite the
wording of the March 5th agreement. In that peace deal, the parties said
that, "without prejudicing their right to grant wild cards to all other
teams of their choice, for the duration of this agreement ASO, RCS and
Unipublic will examine in a positive spirit the granting of wild cards
to the teams Astana and Unibet, in particular insofar as such decisions
are not likely to expose or be likely to expose the organisers to legal
consequences, of whatever nature they might be."

The sponsor Unibet.com has encountered legal difficulties in France but
does not have the same problem in Spain. However, despite that, Cordero
suggested that the team could still lose out.

"Unibet is not in our plans, but fortunately, as we are not forced by
the rules to give the wildcards on March 1 like last year, we can wait
up to three months, until the end of May, beginning of June [before we
decide]. The last word it is not yet said.

"If Unibet has all its legal problems solved, if it improves upon the
performances and conditions of the other six candidates... It is not Unibet
alone, we have six candidatures for riding the Vuelta
a Espańa. We will make the decision mainly based on sporting criteria.
Up to today, I don't see Unibet in the Vuelta."

The UCI made several concessions to the Grand Tour organisers at the
March 5th meeting and will be keen that each one of them honours the agreement.
Despite the concerns, McQuaid said that he hoped the deal would prove
to be the correct way forward for the sport.

"As far as we are concerned the ProTour continues and we will continue
to work and develop it. There are a lot of discussions to take place during
the year and hopefully within that time we will come up with an acceptable
solution to the ProTour."

Unibet missed out on riding Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico, but will
have a place in Milan-Sanremo this Saturday.

Klöden: the first German in Tirreno

Yesterday, Andreas Klöden won the final classification of the Tirreno-Adriatico
and by doing so became the first German to have his name in annals of
the race after 42 years of existence. Klöden has the pedigree, having
won Paris-Nice in 2000 and finishing third in the 2004 Tour de France.

Compliments came from all over the world, including from the team's sponsor.
Sunday the President of Kazakhstan called to praise the work of Klöden
and team star, Kazakh Alexander Vinokourov.

"This win is important because it is the first with my new team; they
are more and more convinced that they made a good investment," said Klöden
after the stage to La Gazzetta dello Sport.

He will return to racing in the Critérium International, starting March
31, facing the likes of Damiano Cunego and Alejandro Valverde, but his
training is focused on the Tour de France.

"In this race [Tirreno] I marked a point in my favour," said the 31 year-old
German, who raced with T-Mobile up until the end of last year. "Who will
be the captain between me and Vinokourov [at the Tour]? It is impossible
to say now."

Petacchi determined for Sanremo

"Sanremo will be another story," said Alessandro Petacchi of Milram after
the final stage of Tirreno-Adriatico.
The 2005 Milano-Sanremo winner wanted to leave his mark on the Corsa
dei Due Mari but was denied the chance. Yesterday, he was force out
of action, when, at two kilometres to go Erki Pütsep (Bouygues Telecom)
crashed directly in front of him.

"I had lost my teammates in the curve beforehand, but still I was not
too far back," continued the 32 year-old to La Gazzetta dello Sport.
"Then the crash of Pütsep; I did not have to put my foot down but I had
to restart from almost a standstill and I found myself at the back of
the group."

Ale-Jet had an abbreviated train, with only Alessandro Cortinovis, Fabio
Sacchi and Marco Velo; Erik Zabel retired before stage six and Volodymyr
Dyudya was out of action due to the flu. "I would have liked to win a
stage," continued Petacchi, who in
2004 scored three wins in Tirreno. But this year there were not really
many opportunities on offer; stage one, which Robbie McEwen swiped with
shrewdness, stage two, ruled by Alexandr Arekeev's escape and Tuesday's
final stage.

Petacchi has passed nearly a month since his last win (a stage in Vuelta
Valenciana) but, in view of Sanremo, this Saturday, he is not worried.
"It is not worth it for me to risk more than I have to, especially if
I could crash. I am coming off a period where I have suffered a lot, I
am still missing something in the sprint, a certain insecurity remains."

Gianluigi Stanga, Milram Team Manager, confirmed his sprinter's strength.
"He is very well physically, even if he still has to do a little more
work because he is coming off a season of half-service. If we lose Sanremo
we will lose it in a spirit. Alessandro has all of the cards he needs
to arrive in the sprint."

Last year Petacchi was
there on the Via Roma for the sprint but he was foiled by Filippo Pozzato,
who had escaped on the Poggio. During the last week in Tirreno the two
were able to size each other up. "He is going strong," said Petacchi of
Pozzato. But Petacchi thinks that he is going even better, pointing towards
his race sensations.

"I did not think that I would come here and go so well on the climbs.
I feel great, I never arrived dead or tired [after the stages], and I
recovered with ease. The Cipressa and Poggio are less difficult than the
climbs we faced here, and I have the resistance. I am confident."

Quick-Step and Caisse d'Epargne for Sanremo

This Saturday Quick-Step will send a strong team to support Tom Boonen
and 2004 winner Paolo Bettini in the Milano-Sanremo. Backing the two riders
will be Carlos Barredo, Kevin Hulsmans, Sébastien Rosseler, Matteo Tosatto,
Kevin Van Impe and Giovanni Visconti, with Director Sportif Serge Parsani.